Streets of Milan
STAGE 1 DRAWING THE COMPOSITION
First draw the composition with a pencil, paying attention to the shape and the proportional relationships between the sky, the building, the ground and the trees. Differing heights and depths should be distinguished from one another, and the occlusion method should be used to differentiate the near and far levels of the painting for ease of adding colors afterward. The street light in front is very important as it helps to divide and apportion the picture. In addition, we must pay attention to the perspective.
STAGE 2 THE SKY Start with painting the sky, first draw the color of the cloud with light yellow and then mix rose red and sky blue pigments with ample water to adjust the purple-gray hues. At this stage, you should pay close attention to the amount of water, not too wet and not too dry. Water control is very important. STAGE 3 THE BUILDINGS & GROUND
Next, use the orange to paint the light-receiving part of the ground and, before the orange dries, draw the rest of the ground, including its shaded parts when the orange is half-dry, and draw the steps with warm colors when it is dry. When the ground portions of the picture have dried, you can begin to draw the architectural portions, starting from the top and then proceeding to the bottom. The roof should be painted in lighter hues, and the background hues should transition from warm to cold. The different surfaces of the building should be painted separately. When the building surfaces have almost dried, the windows should be painted with dark colors. During this process one must pay attention to the subtle changes and connections between similar colors.
STAGE 4 POINTS OF INTEREST
At this time, began to draw the building on the right side of the foreground. Because the focal points of this painting are the buildings in the center, in order to highlight them, the facade of the building in the foreground should be weakened and blurred. Because the focal points of the painting are warm and light, the building in the foreground should be painted in cold and dark hues. While the paint is still wet draw the warm-cold transitions. The foliage in the background should be painted with relatively cold and grey colors and it is painted with simple and decisive brushstrokes. The tree in the middle ground should be painted yellowish-green at the top and transition to cold-grey toward the bottom— a change manifested subtly and gradually throughout the object.
STAGE 5 FINAL PAINTING
Streets of Milan, watercolor, 19 x 14 cm (7½ x 5½") When painting the trees, pay attention to its the relationship with the house and the street lamp. The space for the street lamp should be preserved from the beginning, and it should be drawn only after the tree has been finished. At this time, details such as the car in the foreground, the shadows cast from the light, the texture of the road, and the windows of the building, should be adjusted to complete the picture.